Qualification. To qualify, a student must have attained at the end of the junior year a
cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.0 and a grade-point average of at
least 3.4 in courses required for the major. Preferably by the end of the
junior year, but no later than the first week of the senior year, the student
should apply formally to the chemistry undergraduate vice chair for admittance
to the chemistry honors program. A student with an undergraduate cumulative
grade-point average of at least 3.0 and a grade-point average between 3.0 and
3.4 in courses required for the major also may be admitted upon review by the Undergraduate
Research and Honors Committee.
Honors in Chemistry. In order to graduate with Honors in Chemistry, accepted candidates are expected to:
-
maintain a grade-point average of at least 3.4 in courses
required for the major,
-
complete at least 3 credits per semester in an independent
senior research project (01:160:497-498), and
-
make an oral presentation at the end of the senior year.
Honors Thesis. In order to graduate with High Honors or Highest Honors in Chemistry, accepted candidates are expected to fulfill the
honors requirements listed above and, in addition, write a thesis based on
their independent research in chemistry and defend this thesis before a
committee comprised of their research adviser and one additional faculty member
selected from the Undergraduate Research and Honors Committee. A successful defense of the thesis satisfies
requirement for an oral presentation.
The designations of High Honors and Highest Honors will normally require grade-point averages greater
than 3.6 and 3.8, respectively, in courses required for the major. If the
thesis defense is sufficiently meritorious, the thesis committee may recommend High or Highest Honors for a student who has excelled in research and has a
lower grade-point average than listed above. In all cases, the final
recommendation will be made by the Undergraduate Research and Honors
Committee.
Students in the School of Arts and Sciences (SAS) will be designated SAS Paul Robeson
Scholars. An outstanding thesis qualifies a
student for a Henry Rutgers Scholars Award. (See
http://sasundergrad.rutgers.edu/academics/additional-academic-programs/thesis-programs for more details.)
As an alternate path to departmental honors, students in the
School of Environmental and Biological Sciences may elect to apply to the George
H. Cook Scholars Program. (See http://sebshonors.rutgers.edu/gh_cook_scholars_program/index.html for program and deadline information.)
